Germany says to keep soldiers in Baltics as long as needed

German
Foreign minister Gabriel speaks during a news conference in
RigaThomson
Reuters

RUKLA, Lithuania/AMARI, Estonia (Reuters) - German Foreign
Minister Sigmar Gabriel on Thursday criticized Russia's military
build-up on its borders with the Baltic states as irrational and
said Germany would keep troops in the region for as long as
needed.

Gabriel visited about 400 German soldiers stationed in Rukla,
Lithuania, as part of a German-led battle group of 1,000 troops
that will be joined this year by a U.S.-led forces in Poland,
British-led soldiers in Estonia and Canadian-led troops in
Latvia.

NATO is expanding its presence in the region to levels
unprecedented since the Cold War, prompted by Russia's annexation
of Crimea and accusations - denied by Moscow - that it is
supporting a separatist conflict in eastern Ukraine.

The NATO presence will swell further for a series of exercises
this summer, but is dwarfed by the Russian military build-up,
U.S. officials say.

"The military potential that the Russian Federation has built up
here at the border is completely irrational in my view because
there is zero threat emanating from these countries," Gabriel
told reporters.

Gabriel gave no further details, but said the German troops would
remain at the Lithuanian base "as long as needed".

Russia has said it has noticed German soldiers deploying along
its borders for the first time since World War Two and said it
views the deployment of NATO troops and military hardware to the
Baltic states as a threat.

Moscow has described its own military deployments as being either
defensive and a direct response to NATO, or as part of a sweeping
program to modernize its armed forces.

"SOLID PROTECTION"

German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen, who visited the
Lithuanian base last month after the German troops arrived, told
reporters at an air base in Amari, Estonia, that Germany was
committed to ensuring the safety of the region.

German air force units have been stationed in Estonia to provide
air defense since 2005 but their presence was increased in 2014
for air policing operations.

"Estonia, and our friends from Lithuania, Latvia and Poland, can
rely on us," von der Leyen said. "We Germans know what it means
to be at the eastern border and to have the solid protection of
the alliance."

Von der Leyen and Gabriel both addressed concerns about
increasing Russian disinformation campaigns after a fake report
surfaced about a Lithuanian being raped by German troops that
NATO said was traced to Russia.

"No one expects a real military confrontation to happen here, but
what there is, and what has been reported in Lithuania, Latvia
and Estonia, are attempts at massive disinformation and influence
campaigns," Gabriel said.

Von der Leyen said Germany and Europe were seeing clear signs of
"efforts to destabilize" similar to Russian interference in the
U.S. presidential election reported by U.S. intelligence
services.

"That is why it is so important that we investigate these cases,
put them on the table and make them public so we can recognize
the patterns," she said.

Russia has categorically denied it ran an influence campaign
designed to sway the U.S. presidential election and has dismissed
as absurd allegations it intends to meddle in European elections
this year.

Such allegations are motivated by a desire to whip up
anti-Russian sentiment and are being used by Western politicians
to distract voters from pressing domestic problems, says Moscow.

(Reporting by Sabine Siebold in Rukla and David Mardiste in
Amari; Writing by Andrea Shalal; editin by Janet Lawrence and
Richard Lough)

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